ON OUR INCREDIBLY long drive back to North Carolina, I called Agent Silvers to update her on what had happened. I told her I'd found and healed Amalia, but there were three other girls I hadn't yet found. She promised to look for them and keep me updated.

Thirteen hours, thirty-six minutes, and nine stops later, we pulled into my driveway as the sun came up in Asheville. I went straight to my room and slept all day. When I woke up, I was alone in my bed and there were stars outside my window. I could hear voices downstairs.

My body protested movement with a blistering pain when I rolled to sit up. My face throbbed once I was vertical, and I sat on the edge of the bed until the dizziness passed before I dared to stand. When the room stopped spinning, I pushed myself off the bed and trudged to the bathroom.

I flipped the light switch on, and when I caught sight of my reflection I almost shut it back off. "Oh boy."

The entire left side of my face was swollen and bright blue with purple splotches. I gently pried my eye open to find blood where the whites should have been.

"Knock, knock!" I heard Adrianne call from my bedroom door.

"In here," I replied. "Prepare yourself before you walk in this bathroom. I look like I should be dead."

I heard the click-clack of her heels against my bedroom floor.

"Don't be such a drama qu—whoa! Oh my god! What happened to your face?" She froze halfway through the bathroom door behind me.

I turned to face her. "I told you to be prepared."

She covered her gaping mouth with her hands, the newly plastered pink acrylic tips on her nails nearly gouging her eyes. "Sloan," she whimpered.

"It's not the worst of it," I said.

"I don't know how that's possible."

I pulled up the front of my shirt, and Adrianne stumbled back into the doorframe. "Is she OK?" Her voice squeaked with concern as she stepped forward and gingerly touched the sides of my belly.

"She's fine. The doctor said my ice cream addiction saved her."

"I'm so glad you're OK." She straightened and put her arms around me.

I winced when she squeezed. "Ouch."

She let go. "I'm sorry."

"It's OK. I'm going to be sore for a while I'm afraid." I turned toward the mirror. "Can you put my hair up? It hurts to raise my arms."

She raked my hair up with her hands and leaned next to my ear. "I will always do your hair," she said and kissed my cheek.

"Did you go home and change after work?"

She had on designer jeans and a fuzzy, blue cowl neck sweater that matched her blue three-inch heels.

"Maybe."

"Are you here to see me or my father-in-law?"

She finished tying my hair in a messy bun on the top of my head. "Do you want the truth?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Hey, it's not my fault. I didn't even know you went to Chicago, much less that you were hurt. Warren never tells me anything." She eyed me in the mirror. "You really should fix that. What if something serious happened?"

"More serious than being hit by a train?"

We both laughed.

"Come on. Let's go downstairs," she said. "Nathan's here."

Halfway down the staircase, I decided changing floors was a very bad idea. Even with Adrianne on one side for support and the hand rail on the other, I wasn't sure I'd make it to the living room. Each step felt like it was ripping my torso in half, and if going down hurt that bad, I didn't even want to imagine what going back up was going to feel like. We were almost at the bottom when Warren saw us and jumped up to help. Nathan and Azrael were seated at the dining table with beers in front of them, and Reuel was on the couch.

"I've got you," Warren said, stepping into Adrianne's spot.

Two more steps.

One more.

I almost cried when we reached the floor. My forehead was prickled with sweat. "That wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done."

He put his hand under my chin and tilted my face up. "You need an ice pack, babe."

"There are some in the freezer," I said.

"I got it," Adrianne announced, crossing the room ahead of us.

Nathan stood when we were most of the way to the dining area. He had come from work, a night job. I knew by his dark green pants and black pullover. His badge dangled from a chain around his neck. "Sloan." His voice cracked with emotion.

"Do I look that bad?" I asked.

Everyone else answered a resounding "yes" in unison, except for Reuel, who said "aytim."

Nathan cleared his throat, then cupped the normal side of my face in his hand and examined the bruising. "You're a train wreck. Literally."

I laughed and pushed his chest. "Shut up."

"Here," Adrianne said, handing me an ice pack she'd wrapped in a kitchen towel.

"Thank you."

"Come sit down," Nathan said. "You look like you're going to black out…or puke." He made a dramatic sour face. He'd had to deal with my vomit a lot.

"Stop making me laugh. It hurts."

Warren helped me into the chair at the head of the table. "Are you hungry? Nathan brought over dinner."

I shook my head.

"What?" Nathan asked. "Sloan's not hungry? No way."

I chuckled again. "Thanks for bringing dinner."

"You need to eat," he said. "There's steak and spinach salad. Both are high in iron. I heard you lost a lot of blood."

"I did. Thank you." I looked at Warren who was standing beside me. "Maybe I should eat a little."

He nodded. "Coming right up. Nate, you want another beer?"

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks." Nathan stretched his legs out, crossing one boot over the other, and laced his fingers behind his head. "I hear you saved a little girl."

"She did, and derailed a train while she was at it," Azrael said.

Nathan scowled across the table at him. "Oh, lay off, Az. If God didn't want her to use that power, I don't guess he would've given it to her. Nobody died."

Adrianne was sitting next to Azrael, and she pinched her lips together to stop the smile that was trying to tip up the corners over her mouth.

Nathan looked back at me and winked.

Warren returned with my plate of food. He'd even cut my steak. "Eat what you can."

"Thank you."

He kissed the top of my head, then brought a chair in from the kitchen to sit beside me.

"Tell me what you found out at the prison," Nathan said, not directing the question at a specific person.

That one, I didn't want to answer, so I chewed a piece of steak slowly. Warren told him everything we'd learned from Marisol. How she'd basically been held prisoner for twenty years after signing a deal with the devil to keep her daughter alive. Nathan's face fell when Warren told him she'd killed herself during the night. Across the table, Adrianne's eyes got a little misty.

"She did help us find the demons' second hideout where it looks like they may have been dabbling in bioweapons," Warren said.

Nathan's eyes widened. "No shit?"

"They were testing drug resistant STDs on those kids," Warren said sadly.

Nathan rubbed a hand over his mouth. "Wow."

"Azrael thinks they may have been trying to thin out the human race for when they take over the world," I added.

"Seriously?" Adrianne asked.

"Yep. There's no better time than now to be practicing safe sex," I said.

I didn't miss the pink that rose in my best friend's cheeks.

"What does all that have to do with the train though?" Nathan asked.

I shook my head. "It doesn't have anything to do with the train. The wreck happened because I left to go find the sick little girl." I gestured toward Azrael. "He told me the risks, and I did it anyway."

Nathan sat up straight in his chair and leaned his elbows on the table. "But that doesn't make any sense. These demons worked like hell to set all this in motion, right? They've busted their asses for thirty years to make sure Warren and Sloan have this kid." He lifted his hands in question. "So why do they keep trying to kill her?"

Adrianne nudged Azrael's arm. "That's a good point."

Azrael was peeling the label on the bottle in front of him. "You assume that all the angels are aligned under the same plan, Detective. There are plenty of angels who don't want the spirit line destroyed, and they certainly have no desire for a being with the power to destroy them."

"There was a demon on the platform," I said to Nathan. "He'd been following us all day."

"Or maybe we were following him," Warren said. "He seemed to be wherever we showed up."

I nodded. "I think he was behind the train. It was too big of a coincidence that he was there."

"Who is he?" Warren asked Azrael.

Az shrugged. "I'm not sure, but I intend to find out. His behavior is curious."

"He reminds me of Taiya," Warren said.

I pointed my fork at him. "I got the same vibe, but he's not Seramorta, right?"

"Definitely not," Warren answered.

"Tomorrow, perhaps, I'll go back and look for him," Azrael said. "I want to find out who he is and what part he plays in all this."

"You're going back?" Warren asked, surprised. "Am I going with you?"

"You'll stay here. Sloan and Reuel will need your help for a couple of days."

I looked at Nathan. "Have you seen Reuel's arm?"

Nathan made a gagging noise.

"You should have seen it yesterday. It's worlds better now than it was," I said.

"So I hear," Nathan said. "That's pretty badass that he tackled the train."

"I'd be dead if it weren't for him," I said.

"A lot of people would be," Warren agreed.

"What about Taiya?" Nathan asked. "Any new leads on her."

My shoulders slumped. "Nothing. Marisol knew her but had no idea where she might have gone."

"I'll call around tomorrow and see if she's turned up at any of the local departments," Nathan offered.

"Thanks." I turned to Warren. "Speaking of calling people, did you call my dad?"

He shook his head. "No. Sorry, babe." He picked up his phone. "Want me to?"

"No, don't. It will probably scare the hell out of him. Maybe the bruising will fade before I see him."

"Or maybe he'll think Warren's a wife beater," Nathan said with a grin.

Warren sat back and crossed his arms over his chest, smiling. "Man, I'm going to be glad when you're gone."

"That reminds me," I said, putting my fork down. "I want to have a going away party. We need to celebrate."

Nathan laughed. "I've been with the department for six months. That's nothing to celebrate."

"Well, we should celebrate the new job," I said. "It's a big deal, and I think we all need something to be happy about."

"I think it's a great idea," Adrianne said. "We should have it here."

"Here?" I asked.

I recognized the eyes-glossed-over gaze that she had as her eyes swept around my house. I'd seen it many times since she started planning my wedding. "Oh yeah. I could do a lot with this space. You handle the food and drinks. I'll take care of the rest."

Nathan shook his head. "Sloan doesn't need to handle the food."

I laughed. "Warren can do it. I'll order the cake."

"Thank god. We don't need a Thanksgiving do-over," Nathan said.

"Amen to that," Adrianne agreed. "Nathan, are you excited about the job?"

Nathan's face was inscrutable. "I am. It's going to be really different from what I'm used to."

"What exactly is the job?" I asked.

Azrael drained what was left of his beer. "I want to become more hands-off with the business, so I need someone I can trust to take over."

My brow lifted. "You want Nathan to take over Claymore?"

"Eventually." Azrael draped his arm around the back of Adrianne's chair. "Warren and I will have a lot of work to do once the baby is born to—"

I interrupted him and tapped my chest. "You mean Warren and I will have a lot to do. We're the parents."

Azrael's lips parted, but no sound came out.

"Azrael, I'm not going to just hand this kid over to you once it pops out," I said with an incredulous laugh. "If that's what you think, then you need to do a reality check really quick."

He sighed. "Of course not. I only mean that our number one focus is going to be keeping you all safe."

I relaxed, but only slightly.

Azrael got up and carried his beer bottle to the kitchen. He returned with a fresh one from the refrigerator. "Claymore is a worldwide, billion-dollar company."

"Billion?" Adrianne asked, turning fully sideways in her chair as he sat.

He nodded. "Yes. There's no way I can keep it going and prepare for what is to come. I need help, and Detective McNamara is the logical choice to train as my successor."

I held up my hand. "No offense, Nathan, but there's nothing logical about it. He's a really excellent cop, but I don't see how that translates into running a billion-dollar mercenary firm."

Warren groaned.

Azrael held up a finger. "First of all, you have to stop using the word mercenary. It does nothing for the company image. Second, I can train a soldier, but I can't teach anyone what Nathan has learned this past year. He fits in well in my world without being part of it."

The sound of ripping Velcro caught my attention. I looked over to see Nathan remove the American flag on his hat and replace it with his "Regular Guy" patch. Warren chuckled.

Nathan winked at me. "Besides, it has one hell of a benefits package."

I looked back at Azrael. "You're going to get him killed."

Az pointed at me. "No, that's your department."

"Oh, burn!" Nathan yelled, biting his fist.

Warren shoved back from the table laughing.

Adrianne hid her face behind her hands.

Even Reuel laughed from the couch.

"You all suck," I said, pushing my plate away.

Nathan nudged my leg with the toe of his boot. "It's all good, buttercup. You did make me a little bit invincible."

I groaned.

Warren knocked his knuckles against the table and looked at Nathan. "Az wants me to go to Claymore to train you."

Nathan laughed loudly. "Right."

"Why is that so funny?" Azrael asked. "Warren's one of the most qualified soldiers we've ever had."

Nathan made a sour face. "Because it's him. You know we can only handle each other in small doses, right?"

"He has a point," Adrianne said.

Warren tilted his head toward me. "Besides, Sloan and I already agreed not to go."

I smiled. "I guess you'll have to find somebody else."

Azrael looked at Warren. "Maybe I'll bring in Fury."

Warren's head whipped toward him, then he smirked. "Good luck with that."

Nathan got up and pulled his keys from his pocket. "While you guys decide my future, I'm going to go home and get some sleep." He looked at me. "When is my party?"

I thought for a second. "Your last day. Friday the 14th. Seven o'clock sound good?"

He nodded. "Seven is great."

"Can you invite your family?" I asked him. "I'd really love to see them again."

"Sure. I'll see if they can make it," he said.

Adrianne raised her hand. "Wait. Friday the 14th is Valentine's Day."

"Yep," I said.

Her bottom lip poked out. "What if some of us already have plans?"

My head tilted in question. "Do you have plans?"

She looked at Azrael, who wasn't saying anything. "Well, not yet…"

"Then don't make any." I laughed and waggled my brows teasingly at her. "Look who's killing two birds with one stone now."

She stuck her tongue out at me.

I reached for Nathan. "Help me. I'll walk you out."

"You don't have to do that," he argued.

"I want to. Help me up."

He took my hand and bent to hook his other arm behind my back. God, he smelled good. "Warren, come with us," I said.

Warren stood and Nathan passed me off to him. Arm in arm, we followed Nathan to the front door.

"Goodnight, everybody," Nathan called over his shoulder. "Reuel, take it easy."

Reuel grunted.

"Bye, Nate!" Adrianne replied.

"See ya, man," Azrael said.

Nathan waved and opened the front door. Cold wind rushed inside and took my breath away.

"Holy smokes," I said, gasping.

Warren grabbed my coat and draped it around my shoulders before helping me out to the porch.

"Go back inside," Nathan said. "It's freezing out here."

"No. I want to ask you something. Shut the door."

He closed the door behind us. "What's up?"

I lowered my voice to a whisper. "Did you find out anything about Warren's mom?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. I don't think her last name was Claymore."

My nose scrunched up. "Yeah, I figured we weren't that lucky."

"Why don't you ask Az?"

Warren grimaced. "It's a sensitive subject."

I sighed. "I made the mistake of bringing it up again in Chicago."

"Well, I'll see if I can dig anything up when I get out to New Hope."

I pulled my coat tighter around my shoulders. "I know this really isn't any of my business, but are you sure you want to take this job? It doesn't sound like you."

Nathan looked out at the night sky. The moon was almost full, a pale yellow against a clear black canvas. After a second, he nodded. "I'm sure. It's going to be a good thing for me." He turned his gray eyes back to me. "It's going to be a good thing for all of us."

Warren offered him his hand. "I think you're right, brother."

Nathan shook it. "Thank you." He released Warren's hand and gently touched my elbow. "Keep ice on your face and get some rest. I'll check on you soon."

"Thanks again for bringing dinner," I said as he headed down the stairs.

He looked back at us and winked. "It's the least I could do for not being in Chicago to save your asses."

Warren laughed. "Goodnight, Nate."

Suddenly, Nathan stopped at his door and turned back around. "I almost forgot." He reached into his pocket, then tossed whatever he retrieved up to me on the porch.

I looked in my hands and saw a Milky Way.

"Have a good night, guys," he said. He got into his SUV and drove away.